Second Life is a well known virtual world in which every single item of content is created and designed from scratch by the residents, or users of the platform. However, Second Life is simply miles ahead of the competition for one main reason. It has a booming virtual economy. Even as the real world struggled with global recession, Second Life residents continued to spend their ‚Linden dollars,‘ and 2009 was a record year. Residents spent the equivalent of 567 million US dollars in Second Life.

The currency of Second Life is Linden Dollars. They are bought through the exchange, better known as the Lindex. These Linden dollars can then be spent on a variety of goods and services made or offered by other users or residents. The residents earning Linden dollars in Second Life can cash them out into a very real currency! This means that Second Life is actually a means of real income for many people.

But what do people in Second Life actually spend their money on? Well, virtual land is big money business. Residents pay both an upfront fee and an ongoing monthly fee to rent the virtual space on which to set up homes, stores, clubs, relaxation or romancing locations or even spoken word venues. There’s also plenty of money gets spent on avatar appearance, Second Life fashion, skins, virtual hairstyles and shapes. People like to have their 3d representations looking great.

There’s also no shortage of cash spent on services in world. These services might include marketing services to enlist the help of specialists in marketing your own products or even on a live musician or comedian to perform at an event at one of the many clubs or live performance venues within Second Life.

For many people who have never been involved in Second Life, to hear of people spending such copious amounts of money on items and services that simply do not physically exists is often difficult to understand. However, the economy within this booming virtual world is a real income for many talented designers. And for anyone who still can’t get their head around it… you pay for your internet connection right? Can you touch it? Thought not.

For a satirical look at Second Life, check out Josue Habana’s Second LIfe Blog or for Second Life Machinima visit his Youtube channel.